8. Stay hopeful. Hope allows you to stay in touch with possibilities, answers and solutions instead of limitations and problems.

9. Stay focused on:
* What you can do rather than what you can’t do.
* What you control rather than what you can’t control.
* What’s working rather than what’s not working.
* Possibilities rather than limitations.

10. Learn to appreciate the positive aspects of negative thinkers. Pessimists:
* Help us see things more accurately.
* Increase our perception of danger.
* Cause us to weigh the downside more carefully.
* Better remember negative feedback.

11. Practice gratitude. It requires you to focus on the good things that are happening.

12. Practice forgiveness. It frees your mind of negative thoughts.

13. Play to your strengths. Focusing on your strengths and experiencing the success that comes with doing something well keeps you in the moment and makes it virtually impossible to feel negative and pessimistic.

14. The part of the brain that controls our emotions also controls our facial muscles. Changing the way you move can snap you out of a negative state. No matter how negative you feel, act positive. Your brain cannot tell the difference.

Learning to think in an optimistic/positive way is a behavior that can be learned. It takes a commitment to change and requires practice so that it becomes a habit. The rewards of a happier and more fulfilling life are well worth the effort.